History

Dedicated to working for justice by offering direct services for people in need while creating social change through advocacy and education.

Covenant House was founded in 1981 by downtown Christian and Jewish congregations that were overwhelmed by requests for help from a growing number of homeless and indigent people coming into Charleston.  Since that formation nearly three decades ago, Covenant House has had a significant impact in the community addressing the needs of the low-income and no-income population.  From the first program -- a Drop-In Center for Charleston’s homeless population -- came the Food Pantry, Clothing Closet, an emergency assistance program, Homeless Outreach, Nursing Outreach, and many other programs and organizations.  Newsletters from previous years can be found by following the Newsletter Archives link.

The first ten years: 1980s

In an effort to address the growing number of people living in homelessness on Charleston city streets, the Charleston Interdenominational Council on Social Concerns (CICSC) took on the challenge of developing an urban ministry and homeless outreach program in 1980.  They set up shop at 1109 Quarrier Street, property owned by St. John’s Episcopal Church which was leased to the project for $1 per year.

The idea, as written in a St. John’s interchange was to, “proceed with efforts to obtain a street minister to live and work out of [1109 Quarrier Street]; develop a long range program within the first year and seek to pool emergency funds from those who are members of the CICSC.”

Many from the community donated materials; renovations (estimated at $100,000) were provided at no cost to CICSC. Labor was provided by work release inmates under the supervision of Milford Ziegler who worked for Gaston Caperton.  Further renovation projects were conducted in 1987 and 1988.

In late March of 1981, Covenant House was incorporated and opened its doors as a drop-in center.  A centralized food pantry, clothing closet and emergency assistance fund were also established.  Also during March of 1981, the first co-directors, Barbara Ferraro and Patricia Hussey, were hired, but could not begin work for several months.  In the interim, Pat Perelman from Christ Church United Methodist volunteered as the Director, keeping Covenant House afloat until the new directors arrived.  On September 1, 1981, Pat & Barbara took over leadership of the organization, expanding the fledgling organization to new heights of service over the next 26 years.

During its first ten years, Covenant House began its legacy as a community advocacy organization by tackling a variety of public policy issues:

1982: opposed proposed changes to the State Department of Welfare's policy that would penalize recipients of welfare receiving monetary assistance from charitable organizations. 

1982: produced "One Voice", a slide show/educational tool telling the early history of Covenant House. 

1983: filed an amicus brief (friend of the court) in the West Virginia Supreme Court which stated "all people in West Virginia have a right to shelter, food and medical care." West Virginia was the second state in the nation to provide these basic rights.

1984: developed Charleston Public Housing Authority policy giving priority status and placement to people who are homeless.

1986: organized and sponsored the first state-wide conference on homelessness, "Homelessness: The Problem, Root Causes and Solutions." A resource book with the same name was produced following this conference.

1986: published "The Road to Nowhere", a short video of homeless individuals' testimonies with an accompanying teaching aid. 

1987, 1988:  worked to increase public understanding of rural homelessness as distinct from urban homelessness; wrote and published "It Ain't Much, But It's All I Got".

1988:  protested inaccessibility of Kanawha County’s Office of Department of Welfare to outside Charleston city limits; secured accommodations by KRT to provide free bus passes to and from the welfare office.

1988: opened the only comprehensive residential and resource program for people with AIDS, which remained the sole residence in WV for those living with the virus until 1995.

Also in the 1980s, Covenant House served as a starting point/incubator for many programs and organizations, some of which eventually became their own non-profit organizations:

1981: provided free office space to Kanawha Hospice to get established and become its own independent organization. 

1982: assisted with organizational development and free office and operational space for West Virginia Health Right (a free health clinic)

1982: took a leadership role in the formation of Sojourners, a shelter for women and children, was established by a community coalition, providing personnel, organizational development and financial assistance.

1983: established, with other local groups working on homelessness, the Charleston Coalition for the Homeless. 

1984-1989: gave space, personnel, financial and organizational assistance to Cooperative Sewing Inc., a co-op for low-income women opened.

1987:  launched the Rural Housing Program, establishing community development organizations which operate free of political party control.  In 1989, Clay Mountain Housing, which began as part of the Rural Housing Program, became financially independent of Covenant House.

The Second Decade:  1990s

Advocating for those with no voice remained a priority for covenant house throughout the 1990s.  Highlights included:

1991:  produced "A Time To Care", a video celebrating the lives of five Covenant House program participants in commemoration of the organization’s tenth anniversary and services of Covenant House.

1991:  conducted and published a study on rural homelessness (the Rural Housing Program).

1993:  partnered with the United Methodist Church to display pieces of the National AIDS Quilt to West Virginia.

1994:  secured funding from the WV Department of Education, WV Bureau of Public Health and the Greater Kanawha Valley Foundation for production of the play, "Gone Tomorrow", performed by teenagers for teenagers and addressing the AIDS epidemic. With an educational session follows each performance, the play was seen by 18,500 West Virginia youth and adults over the next nine years. Taped for national distribution by Cambridge Educational Products in 1995-96, it received a bronze medal at the Columbus International Film and Video Festival and an award at the International Film and Video Festival in New York.

1994:  published "Building Community, Creating Hope” highlighting the history of Harts Community Development, Inc. -- a model for rural economic development. 

1995-1996:  formed Challenge West Virginia – a Covenant House advocacy program addressing popular education reform (combined the Single Mothers' Program and the Rural Housing Program.  By 1999, Challenge WV received a national grant from Rural Challenge to work on educational policy issues. 

Covenant House also continued serving as a starting point/incubator for many programs and organizations:

1990-1991:  assisted with the incorporation of Harts Community Development, an organization created by low-income people in Lincoln County.  HCD became financially independent in 1991 though Covenant House Covenant House continued providing staff, organizational and community development expertise, financial assistance, and technical assistance for five years.  HCD’s first home, built by volunteers, was dedicated in 1991.

1990:  established links with a rural Lincoln County school to establish an innovative educational writing program, as a result of findings from the Rural Housing Study.

1991:  launched a Single Mothers' Program aimed at "breaking the cycle" of poverty for families living on welfare. The following year, participants moved into a newly renovated home and apartments.

1991:  launched the holiday Adopt-A Family linking congregations, businesses, schools and individuals with families in need during the holiday season.

1992:  began offering a formalized counseling program for individuals, couples, and families, in keeping with the idea that health care is a right.

1992:  provided staff, financial assistance, and organizational/community development consulting to CORA Community Development, part of the Rural Housing Program (which evolved into the Logan County Improvement League), which became incorporated that year.

1993:  incorporated Community Housing, Inc. as a housing non-profit tasked with developing two Section 8-11 homes providing housing for people with HIV/AIDS who would otherwise by homeless.  The homes were completed and open to residents within the next two years, with a room added to one house in 1998 by volunteers from Morris Memorial United Methodist.

1994:  coordinates workshop led by Philadelphia-based Painted Bride Art Center for West Virginia artists seeking grants. Two artists received grants as a result of this workshop.

1994:  approved as a Community Housing Development Organization (CHDO) by the WV Housing Development Fund.

1995-1996:  agreed to become lead agency for fund dissemination through the Housing Opportunities for People With AIDS (HOPWA) program, helping to secure more than $1 million in federal dollars within three years.

1995-current:  formed, with two other community-based housing/AIDS service organizations, a state-wide non-profit coalition: the West Virginia Housing and Advocacy Coalition for People with AIDS.  By 1999, the Coalition was nominated for its work for HUD’s “Best Practice award”. Over the next ten years, the Coalition was approved for and drew down millions of dollars in federal HUD dollars to assist people living with HIV/AIDS.

1995-1996:  collaborated with the City of Charleston’s HOME Program, to help two families purchase homes.

1995-1996:  sold Single Mothers' Program property.  Proceeds assisted single women with children to purchase their own homes.

1995-1996:  played key role in development of the Kanawha Valley Collective, the local Continuum of Care association of social service organizations assisting those experiencing homelessness. 

2000s: This Decade

Covenant House began a new period of organizational growth:

2000-2002:  began planning a new building for Covenant House at 600 Shrewsbury Street, Charleston. A capital campaign began to raise $2.25 million dollars. Within 22 months of beginning the capital campaign for the new building, the goal of $2.25 million was realized making Covenant House debt-free.  In 2001, Simpson Memorial United Methodist Church hosted a groundbreaking ceremony attended by City and State officials, neighbors, supporters and program participants.  2001:  Construction of the new Covenant House was completed in September, 2001 by Pray Construction (which took no profit and enlisted help from its sub-contractors to donate materials to this project).  Programs became fully operational on October 5, 2001.  Charleston Renaissance awards Covenant House with “Best New Development Award” for 2002.

Advocacy and public education remained a priority for covenant house throughout the 2000s.  Highlights included:

2000:  published two additional reports: "Long School Bus Rides" and "Small Schools" (Challenge WV) 

2001:  published, "Without A Vision the People will Perish" containing the "Best Stories of Covenant House".

2002:  published and released “If This is Democracy, Then I Missed the Bus” and “Building Schools in West Virginia with Good Intentions and Questionable Results” (Challenge WV).

2002-2007:  hosted "Conversations Over Lunch" a series of noon-time discussions on topics of interest to the general population and open to the public.

2002-2007:  hosted art shows in the Creative Gallery supporting local artists.  Children’s art classes were offered during 2003.

2003:  published The Long and Winding Road, Consolidation: The Separation of School and Community (Challenge WV).

2003:  co-sponsored a Fair Housing Conference in Charleston.

2003-2007:  launched a Health Action program to work on securing health care coverage for all West Virginians.  The Health Action program was instrumental in the passage of a WV resolution urging the Legislature to set a goal of providing all citizens of WV with comprehensive, quality and affordable health care, as well as enacting the WV Pharmaceutical Availability bill.  The program worked on legislation to require employers qualifying for economic development funds to provide health insurance benefits for its employees.

2007:  testified at Congressional hearings on Capitol Hill regarding reauthorization of the McKinney-Vento Act and how a "one size fits all" approach to federal spending on preventing homelessness is impractical for small cities and rural areas.

2007-present: collaborating with the WV chapter of the American Institute of Architects, host an annual "Canstruction" competition to raise awareness about hunger in our city.  Architectural, engineering, and construction firms compete against each other, building colossal structures entirely out of canned food.

2007-present: organize in coalition with the Kanawha Valley Collective and WVMHCA Charleston's annual "One Night Without A Home" sleep out event at Magic Island park in downtown Charleston, raising awareness about homelessness in Charleston.

2007-present:  collaborate with other local AIDS service organizations to present a Charleston World AIDS Day commemoration each December 1.

2007-present:  take a lead role in ensuring the coordination and sustainability of the Frank Veltri Thanksgiving Dinner for those who are shut-in or experiencing homelessness.

2008-2009: launched a new Health Outreach approach, focused on raising public awareness on important health issues.  Activities included media campaigns series on smoking cessation and HIV/AIDS awareness.

2009:  participated in a formal, legal intervention in West Virgina electric companies' request of the WV Public Service Commission to raise their rates.  Covenant House with attorneys from Mountain State Justice leading the charge requested , among other things, the establishment of programs and protocols to ensure that low-income consumers retain access to electricity.

Covenant House continued serving as a starting point/incubator/supporter for programs and organizations:

2000:  staffed a new outreach program for those living in homelessness, in collaboration with five Kanawha Valley Collective partners.

2002-2008:  continued growing Challenge WV with local chapters formed in 27 counties and state-wide monthly meetings held at Covenant House. On January 1, 2009, Challenge WV became its own non-profit organization.

2003-present:  host meetings of various civic groups in the tradition of hospitality, including WV Center for African- American Art & Culture, WV Patriots for Peace, Governor’s Interagency Council on Homelessness, WVMHCA PTSD Support Group, WVMHCA Recovery Support Group, FACES on Medicaid Coalition.

2008-present: took a lead role in bringing the national SSI/SSDI Outreach, Access, and Recovery (SOAR) program to West Virginia.  Hired staff who, using the SOAR model, identify people living in homelessness with serious mental illness and who are eligible for federal income benefits and assist them throughout the application process as a step to their recovery.

2008-present:  coordinate a Diversity Program, seeking to provide various educational opportunities for Charleston related to cultural awareness, principles of community, and the development of a safe, respectful and inclusive city.

2009:  as part of a team of Kanawha Valley Collective service providers, launched a program funded by the American Recovery Act's Homeless Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing (HPRP) program.  Covenant House's HPRP program provides assistance to low-income families and individuals directly affected by the recession to retain housing or to quickly regain housing if already facing homelessness.